ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, November 24, 1996 TAG: 9611260040
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOHN A. MONTGOMERY STAFF WRITER
The Salem Bank & Trust Tip-Off Tournament is at the halfway point of its 13th rendition, and in traditional fashion, the Roanoke College basketball team will be playing for the championship.
Roanoke clobbered Gallaudet University 112-61 in Saturday's nightcap at the Bast Center, earning the right to play Ferrum College this afternoon. Ferrum outlasted Albright College 94-86, in overtime, in Saturday's first game.
The Maroons, who were ranked in the top five in four Division III national preseason polls, got balanced scoring from their lineup. Jon Maher and Derek Bryant paced Roanoke with 15 points each, while Jason Bishop and Kyle Murphy added 14 and 12, respectively. Tim Braun, Michael Ball, and DeWayne Bullock each scored 10.
"I was real pleased for the first game of the season,'' Roanoke coach Page Moir said. "We had good intensity at both ends of the floor, we got some good shots early, knocked them down, and that set the tone for the rest of the game.''
Maher also grabbed a game-high 16 rebounds. "This was a strong game for us,'' Maher said. "Everyone hustled and played hard, and this year, our team is so deep that when we bring in new players we don't have a let-up.''
The victory was Moir's 133rd at Roanoke, tying him with his father, Charles, for third place on the school's all-time win list. "Yeah, but he did it quicker,'' the younger Moir said. The elder Moir posted a career record of 133-44 at Roanoke; his son is now 133-58.
Roanoke dominated from the outset Saturday, leading 17-4 six minutes into the game. Although Gallaudet temporarily closed the deficit to 11 (28-17), Roanoke ran off the next 12 points, and cruised to a 54-26 lead at the half.
DeAngelo Brown scored 26 points for the Bison.
In the opening game, Ferrum increased the pace and caliber of its play in the final five minutes of regulation and during the overtime to overcome Albright.
Since becoming a Division III school in the mid-1980s, Ferrum has won 70 percent of its 10 overtime games.
Trailing 65-58 at the 5:05 mark, the Panthers outscored the Lions 36-21 from that point on.
"The key was that our guys woke up and really went after it with the press,'' said Ferrum coach Larry Mangino, making his debut at the Franklin County school.
While the first half of the game was closely contested - there were 21 lead changes - Albright pulled away in the early part of the second half, leading by as much as eight points (56-48 with 10:18 remaining).
"I'm very happy we squeezed this one out,'' Mangino said. "Our John Wooden 1-2-1-1 press was able to get us going, but we were passive and lethargic - especially our post players - in the first 30 minutes. It was like we were playing under water.''
Near the game's end, the Panthers forced a rash of turnovers. The Lions, who have only one senior and no juniors on their 12-man roster, were baffled by Ferrum's pressure and committed 29 turnovers in the game.
When Michael Hunter scored off a Dontel Arrington steal, Ferrum seized its first lead of the second half (69-67) with 3:49 left.
Hunter again put Ferrum ahead (78-76 with a 3-pointer with 16.9 seconds left), but the Lions tied the score on a Dwight Davis stickback of a Shawn Swavely miss with 1.9 seconds remaining. Albright had an opportunity to win at the buzzer of regulation, but freshman Eric Moschak was off the mark with a 40-foot shot after stealing Ferrum's inbounds pass.
The Panthers broke open the overtime early, taking command 87-80 on a Marcus Toney inbounds steal and layup.
Ferrum finished with five scorers in double figures, and was led by Rodney Ponzo's 23 points. Ponzo provided much of the overtime spark, scoring seven points (two baskets and three free throws) in a 10-second span.
Albright's offense was fueled by three 20-point scorers. Davis led the team with 27 points and 17 rebounds. Swavely finished with 25 points and Summer Hemphill had 22.
Today's consolation game will begin at 1 p.m., and the championship will be played 25 minutes after the conclusion of the first game.
"Ferrum's very quick,'' Moir said. "We're going to have to play transition defense right off the bat.''
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